Floor matting/carpeting

ABSTRACT

A mat/carpet ( 1 ) comprises an upper layer ( 3 ) having a soil-removing outer surface ( 7 ) for contacting traffic passing over the mat, and a lower layer ( 5 ) located below the upper layer. The upper layer comprises textile fibers ( 9, 11 ) and is water-permeable whereby water can drain from the upper layer ( 3 ) into the lower layer ( 5 ). The lower layer ( 5 ) is arranged to collect, for subsequent removal, water that is received from the upper layer ( 3 ), and may comprise channels ( 50 ) through which water can flow in a direction generally parallel to the soil-removing outer surface ( 7 ) of the mat.

This application claims the benefit of Great Britain Patent ApplicationNo. GB0620907.6, filed Oct. 20, 2006, and Great Britain PatentApplication No. GB0702025.8, filed Feb. 2, 2007, the disclosure of whichis incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to floor matting/carpeting, moreespecially matting/carpeting that is suitable for use at the entrancesof buildings or other locations.

BACKGROUND

Entrance mats are used to remove dirt and water (hereinafter referred togenerally as “soil”) from the shoes of pedestrians as they enter abuilding. In some locations, for example supermarket and airportbuildings, entrance mats are also required to remove dirt and water fromthe wheels of trolleys or similar articles. Accordingly, referenceherein to the removal of soil from the shoes of pedestrians should beconsidered to include the removal of soil from all traffic (pedestrianand wheeled) that passes over an entrance mat. It is recognized that anentrance mat that functions efficiently can greatly assist in themaintenance of a building by reducing the amount of cleaning that isrequired. In addition, the owners/occupiers of buildings areincreasingly demanding entrance mats that will enhance the appearance oftheir premises.

Various forms of entrance mat are known and, depending on theirconstruction and the materials from which they are formed, are placedimmediately outside or inside a building. Some entrance mats areintended to be disposable (i.e. when they become dirty, they are takenup and thrown away and a new mat is put in place), and some aresemi-disposable (i.e. when they become dirty, they are removed forcleaning, often by washing, and then re-used). Other mats are intendedto be left in position for longer periods of time: they are typicallyharder-wearing and more-effective in removing soil from shoes, and havea greater capacity for trapping and storing the removed soil (so that itis not subsequently carried into the building) without the appearanceand effectiveness of the mat being adversely affected. A mat of thattype can be installed in a recess well in a floor or laid directly onthe floor as a drop-down mat and may be constructed so that dirt canfall through the mat onto the underlying surface: in that way, thesurface of the mat remains clean and effective on the basis of minimalmaintenance, it being necessary to take up or roll back the mat onlyperiodically so that the underlying surface can be cleaned, followingwhich the mat can be replaced. Any water that is removed and trapped bythe mat is expected, in time, to evaporate.

Mats generally remove soil from shoes by a scraping and/or wipingaction, depending on their construction and the materials from whichthey are formed. Mats that provide a scraper action typically have anupper, shoe-contacting, surface that comprises scraper edges orprojections as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,858(Dupont and Laurent); US 2004/0161988 (Yaw); WO 01/60218 (Milliken &Company); and WO 02/15765 (Construction Specialities (UK) Ltd.). Scrapermats that have proved to be both durable and effective in removing dirtfrom shoes etc. are available, under the trade names “Nomad™ Terra 8100”and “Nomad™ Terra 9100”, from 3M Company of St. Paul, Minn., USA. Matsthat provide a wiping action typically have an absorbent textile uppersurface: they are often more aesthetically pleasing than scraper mats,and are available in a wide range of colors and designs and withdiffering characteristics depending on the textile fibers and textileconstructions from which they are formed.

Some entrance mats have an operative surface that provides both wipingand scraping actions. U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,566 (Heine and Tharpe), forexample, describes a tufted textile mat comprising fine denier fibersthat provide a wiping action, and stiff, crimped, coarse denier fibersthat provide a scraping action and also form an open structure in themat capable of receiving and obscuring dirt. Examples of mats thatcomprise fine and coarse fibers are those available, under the tradename “Nomad™ Aqua”, from 3M Company of St. Paul, Minn., USA. In thosemats, the fine and coarse fibers are tufted into a primary backing whichis then provided with a secondary backing formed, for example, fromvinyl or a non-woven fleece.

Other entrance mats are available in which the surface of the mat isdivided into distinct components having different cleaning functions.Examples of mats of that type are the profile mats available, under thetrade name “Nomad™ Optima”, from 3M Company of St. Paul, Minn., USA.Those mats comprise a plurality of parallel aluminum profiles that arelinked together, each profile containing an infill of theabove-mentioned “Nomad™ Aqua” matting material. The infill materialprovides a wiping and a scraping action, the latter being supplementedby the scraping action of the profiles. In addition, soil removed fromthe soles of shoes is efficiently retained by the mat, either by theinfill material or by falling between the profiles into the recess wellin which the mat is installed.

SUMMARY

There is a demand from consumers for continued improvement in theperformance of entrance mats. They generally appreciate the ability ofsome existing entrance mats to remove dirt from shoes, to maintain theirappearance during use and to be easy to clean and wish to see thoseproperties retained. They also continue to expect entrance mats to beaesthetically pleasing, and to be available in a wide range of designsand colors to complement the building or facility in which they areused. However, consumers are now additionally looking for mats thatprovide improved performance in terms of removing water from the shoesof pedestrians, especially under bad weather conditions, coupled with anenhanced ability to retain the water and eliminate what is known as“re-tracking” (i.e. the possibility that water removed from shoes duringone passage over the mat will be picked up during a subsequent passageover the mat and carried into the building or facility that the mat isintended to protect). Re-tracking not only detracts from the appearanceof the building or facility but can also result in floors becomingslippery to the extent that they present a safety hazard. At present,consumers who encounter this problem are usually obliged to spend timeand money in arranging for the delivery of additional mats to supplementor replace those that have become saturated. In extreme conditions, theymay even consider the installation of permanent drains beneath theirentrance mats. The present invention has been made with those issues inmind.

In some spaces, such as small entrance lobbies in public transportvehicles (e.g. train carriages) as well as in buildings, carpeting isrequired that will perform the same function as an entrance mat.Accordingly, reference herein to a mat and/or matting should beconsidered, where applicable, to include carpet and/or carpeting andvice versa.

Outside the field of entrance matting, it is known to usewater-collecting/drainage layers under surfaces such as artificial turfor artificial ski slopes to address the problem of removing excesswater. Examples of such water collecting/drainage layers can be found inUS-A-2006/0068157 and EP-A-0 452 529.

The present invention provides a mat/carpet comprising an upper layerhaving a soil-removing outer surface for contacting traffic passing overthe mat/carpet, and a lower layer located below the upper layer, theupper layer comprising textile fibers; wherein the upper layer iswater-permeable whereby water can drain from the upper layer into thelower layer; and the lower layer is arranged to collect, for subsequentremoval, water that is received from the upper layer.

The mat/carpet may comprise a water-impermeable base layer to containwater within the mat/carpet. For example, the lower layer may have awater-impermeable lower surface for containing water that collects inthe lower layer.

The upper layer of a mat/carpet in accordance with the invention may,for example, comprise a textile pile layer that provides thesoil-removing outer surface. The lower layer may comprise channelsthrough which water can flow in a direction generally parallel to thesoil-removing outer surface of the mat. Those channels may be providedby, for example, extruded polymeric material or by a layer of non-wovenmaterial or coiled web material. The water-impermeable base layer, whenpresent, may be a rubber or plastic sheet, or a rubber or plasticcoating on the lower surface of the lower layer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

By way of example, mats/carpets in accordance with the invention willnow be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic cross-section of an entrance mat in accordancewith the invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic plan view of one component of the mat of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic perspective view of another component of themat of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic cross-section of a modified form of thecomponent shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic cross-section of another entrance mat inaccordance with the invention;

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic perspective view of one component of the mat ofFIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic cross-section of a modified form of thecomponent shown in FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The entrance mat 1 shown in diagrammatic cross-section in FIG. 1comprises an upper layer 3 and a lower layer 5. As described in greaterdetail below, the upper layer 3 comprises a textile floor covering andthe lower layer 5 is a water-receiving layer. The upper surface of thelower layer 5 is permanently bonded to the lower surface of the upperlayer 3 as will also be described in greater detail below.

The outer surface 7 of the upper layer 3 of the mat 1 is the surfacethat comes into contact with the shoes of pedestrians who walk over themat when it is located at the entrance of a building or other facility,or the wheels of trolleys or similar objects that pass over the mat. Theupper layer 3 is intended to remove soil (dirt and water) from thatpedestrian or wheeled traffic, and to prevent the soil from beingcarried further into the building.

The upper layer 3, which is shown separately in FIG. 3, has the form ofa tufted loop-pile carpet, in which some of the looped tufts (showndiagrammatically, and indicated by the reference numeral 9) are formedfrom fine denier fibers (not shown individually) and the others (alsoshown diagrammatically, and indicated by the reference numeral 11) areformed from coarse denier fibers that are textured (i.e. crimped). Thelooped tufts 9, 11 are formed in known manner in a primary backing, towhich a secondary backing is subsequently applied to anchor the tufts inposition. In FIG. 1, the primary and secondary backings are shown forsimplicity as a single backing layer 13. The coarse and fine fibre tufts9, 11 may be randomly interspersed with one another or they may bearranged in regular discrete areas to form, for example, a checkerboardpattern or a pattern of alternating stripes. The looped tufts 9, 11 havea height typically in the range of from 9 to 15 mm, with the fine denierfibers of the tufts 9 having a denier per filament in the range of about15 to 50 and the coarse denier fibers of the tufts 11 having a denierper filament, before texturization, in the range of about 150 to 500. Apreferred material for the fibers is polyamide, a preferred material forthe primary backing is a polyester/polyamide non-woven material, and apreferred material for the secondary backing is polyvinyl chloride(PVC), although other suitable materials could be used (includingpolypropylene for the fibers and rubber or latex, or a non-wovenmaterial for the secondary backing).

Carpet materials of the type shown in FIG. 3, and variations thereof,are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,566 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,333. Inthe case in which the backing 13 is impervious, it is perforated toprovide a plurality of apertures 15 that extend through the wholethickness of the backing. The purpose of the apertures 15 will bedescribed below.

The lower layer 5 of the entrance mat 1, which is shown separately inFIG. 2, is an open, three-dimensional structure comprising a series ofstraight, parallel, vertical walls 17 spaced apart by undulatingvertical walls 19. The upper edges of the undulating walls 19 are levelwith those edges of the straight walls 17 whereas the lower edges of theundulating walls are located slightly above those of the straight walls.The walls 17, 19 may be formed by extrusion and are preferably formedfrom the same material as the lower surface of the upper layer 3 (PVC inthis case), although other suitable materials could be used. The layer 5is provided with a water-impermeable bottom surface, indicated at 21 inFIG. 1. In this case, the bottom surface 21 is formed from the samematerial as the walls 17, 19. Suitable alternative materials for thewalls 17, 19 and the bottom surface 21 include butyl rubber, neoprene[polychloroprene] rubber, nitrile [acrylonitrile-butadiene] rubber,natural rubber, synthetic polyisoprene rubber, polyurethane, polyamide,and polyolefine.

It will be appreciated that the lower edges of the straight walls 17 ofthe lower layer 5 are located on the bottom surface 21 but that thelower edges of the undulating walls 19 are located slightly above thatsurface, whereby the straight walls 17 define a series of parallelchannels 50 extending over the surface.

Structures of the type shown in FIG. 2, variations thereof, and theirmanufacture are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,631,215.

The entrance mat 1 is assembled by bonding the lower surface of theupper layer 3 to the upper surface of the lower layer 5 (i.e. to thetops of the vertical walls 17, 19). The bonding can be effected in anysuitable way, for example using an adhesive. Preferred adhesives are hotmelt adhesives, applied in discrete locations on the lower layer 5 toavoid the formation of an impermeable layer at the interface between thetwo layers 3, 5.

In one specific example, the upper layer 3 of the entrance mat 1 is amatting material available, under the trade designation “3M™ Nomad™ Aqua8500”, from 3M Company of St. Paul, Minn., USA (the backing of which hasbeen perforated to provide the apertures 15) and the lower layer 5 is amatting material available, from 3M Company, under the trade designation“3M™ Nomad™ Terra 6250”. The layers are bonded together using apolyurethane hot melt adhesive available, from 3M Company, under thetrade designation “3M™ Scotch-Weld™ Polyurethane Reactive AdhesiveTE100”. The adhesive is applied in discrete locations on the top of thelayer 5 using an applicator gun available, from 3M Company, under thetrade designation “3M™ Jet-Weld™ Adhesive Applicator”.

The mat 1 is intended to be used as a drop-down mat. The upper layer 3functions to remove both dirt and water from the shoes of pedestriansetc. passing over the mat. More specifically, the coarse fibers of thetufts 11 of layer 3 remove dirt through a scraping action and the finefibers of the tufts 9 remove water through a wiping action. The removeddirt falls into the tufts, where it is hidden and retained therebyensuring that the upper surface of the entrance mat 1 presents agenerally clean appearance and that the dirt is not subsequently pickedup and tracked into the building. Under normal weather conditions, theremoved water is trapped by the fine fibers of the tufts 9 andsubsequently evaporates. Under extremely wet weather conditions, whenthe upper layer 3 becomes saturated, the excess water drains through theapertures 15 in the backing 13 and passes into the lower layer 5 whereit is collected on the bottom surface 21. The channels 50 that aredefined, on the bottom surface 21, by the vertical walls 17 of the lowerlayer 5, allow the water to flow and spread out over the surface 21,rather than accumulate in one area, thereby promoting subsequent removalof the water by evaporation when the ambient conditions permit.Alternatively, the channels 50 can facilitate positive removal of thewater if preferred, as described below.

Another form of entrance mat 31 is shown in diagrammatic cross-sectionin FIG. 5. This mat also comprises an upper, textile matting, layer 33bonded to a lower, water-receiving, layer 35.

The upper layer 33 of the mat 31 is a tufted, cut-pile carpet in whichthe fibers of the tufts 37 are all of one type. The tufts 37 are formedin known manner in a primary backing, to which a secondary backing issubsequently applied to anchor the tufts in position. In FIG. 5, theprimary and secondary backings are shown for simplicity as a singlebacking layer 39. The tufts 37 typically have a height of about 5 mm,and the weight of the pile is typically in the range of from 550 to 600g/m². A preferred material for the fibers of the tufts 37 ispolypropylene, a preferred material for the primary backing ispolyester, and a preferred material for the secondary backing ispolyvinyl chloride (PVC), although other suitable materials could beused (including natural materials, or other polymeric materials for thefibers and rubber for the secondary backing). The fibers used for thetufts 37 need not all be of the same type but could, for example,comprise a mixture of coarse and fine fibers. Cut-pile carpet materialsof this type are well-known and widely-available. In the case in whichthe carpet backing 39 is impervious, it is perforated to form aplurality of apertures 41 that extend through the whole thickness of thematerial.

The lower layer 35 of the entrance mat 31, which is shown separately inFIG. 6, is an open, three-dimensional structure comprising coils ofcontinuous, polymeric filaments 43 that loop and overlap one another ina random manner, and are bonded to one another at their points ofcontact. The lower layer 35 may be an extruded component, and ispreferably formed from the same material as the lower surface of thebacking 39 of the upper layer 33 (PVC in this case), although othersuitable materials could be used.

Structures of the type shown in FIG. 6, and their manufacture, aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,837,988.

The entrance mat 31 of FIG. 5 is assembled by bonding the backing 39 ofthe upper layer 33 to the upper surface of the lower layer 35 (i.e. tothe tops of some of the filament loops). The bonding can be effected inany suitable way, for example using an adhesive. Preferred adhesives arehot melt adhesives, applied in discrete locations on the lower layer 35to avoid the formation of an impermeable layer at the interface betweenthe two layers 33, 35.

In one specific example, the upper layer 33 of the entrance mat 31 is amatting material available, under the trade designation “Duet” fromRinos of Genemuiden, Netherlands, and the lower layer 5 is a mattingmaterial available, from 3M Company, under the trade designation “3M™Nomad™ Terra 8100”. The layers are bonded together using a polyurethanehot melt adhesive available, from 3M Company, under the tradedesignation “3M™ Scotch-Weld™ Polyurethane Reactive Adhesive TE100”. Theadhesive is applied in discrete locations on the top of the layer 5using an applicator gun available, from 3M Company, under the tradedesignation “3M™ Jet-Weld™ Adhesive Applicator”.

The entrance mat 31 is intended to be placed in a recess well for use.The upper layer 33 functions to remove both dirt and water from theshoes of pedestrians etc. passing over the mat. The removed dirt andwater is retained by the tufts 37 and, under normal weather conditions,the removed water subsequently evaporates. Under extremely wet weatherconditions, when the upper layer 33 becomes saturated, the excess waterdrains through the apertures 41 in the backing 39 and passes into thelower layer 35 where it is collected in the bottom of the recess welland contained. The open construction of the lower layer 35 provideschannels that permit the drained water to spread across the recess well,rather than accumulate in one area, thereby promoting subsequent removalof the water by evaporation when the ambient conditions permit.Alternatively, the channels provided by the lower layer 35 canfacilitate positive removal of the water if preferred, as describedbelow.

It will be appreciated that the upper layers 3, 33 of the mats 1, 31could be interchanged to provide alternative entrance mats in which theupper layer 3 of FIG. 1 would be combined with the lower layer 35 ofFIG. 5, and the upper layer 33 of FIG. 5 would be combined with thelower layer 5 of FIG. 1. It will also be appreciated that the closedbottom surface 21 of the lower layer 5 of FIG. 1 could be omitted (asshown in FIG. 4) when the entrance mat is for use in a recess well, andthat a closed bottom surface 45 could be added to the lower layer 35 ofFIG. 5 (as shown in FIG. 7) to provide a drop-down mat.

As a further alternative, a tufted pile carpet material of the typecomprising a water-permeable primary backing and a fleece secondarybacking could be used to form a drop-down mat by providing awater-impermeable base layer on the lower surface of the secondarybacking. It will be understood that, in this context, the term “fleece”means a non-woven material of a type known to be suitable for use as acarpet secondary backing and includes felt materials. In such aconstruction, the tufted pile and primary backing constitute the upperlayer of the mat and the fleece secondary backing constitutes the lowerlayer.

One specific example of a mat of that construction comprises a mattingmaterial available, from 3M Company, under the trade designation “3MNomad™ Aqua™ 9500 to the lower surface of which is bonded a PVC sheethaving a weight of 3 kg/m². The layers are bonded together using apolyurethane hot melt adhesive available, from 3M Company, under thetrade designation “3M™ Scotch-Weld™ Polyurethane Reactive AdhesiveTE100”. The adhesive is applied in discrete locations on the top of thelayer of the PVC sheet using an applicator gun available, from 3MCompany, under the trade designation “3M™ Jet-Weld™ AdhesiveApplicator”. It is also possible to laminate the matting material to anextruded layer of PVC, while the PVC is still hot and tacky, therebyeliminating the need for adhesive.

As an alternative, for a mat of that construction, the tufted pile andprimary backing forming the upper layer could be provided separately inso-called “greige good” form and bonded to a selected fleece layer. Thewater impermeable base layer may be applied to the lower surface of thefleece layer either before or after the fleece layer is bonded to theupper layer. The non-woven web that is used for the fleece layer can becomposed of various materials for example polyester or polyamide, or amixture of both: these materials may be of recycled type. The non-wovenshould be in a form that is easy to handle and process, for example onethat is stabilized by needle-punching, hydroentangling, sewing or heatwelding. Typical web thicknesses are in the range of from 1 to 10 mm,with a typical basis weight being in the range of from 100 to 1000 g/m².One suitable web is a spunbond, needle-punched web formed from polyesterfibers and having a thickness of 3.2 mm and a basis weight of 300 g/m²,commercially available under the trade name VALBOND GEO GAT VRE/5172from ORV Manufacturing (Peruzzo group) of Carmignano (PD) Italy.

It will be understood that other constructions are possible for both theupper and lower layers of an entrance mat in accordance with theinvention.

As regards the upper layer, any textile floor covering (or similar)material that offers the required soil-removing characteristics can beconsidered, provided it is in a form capable of being secured to theselected lower layer of the mat. The material need not be of tuftedconstruction but could, for example, be of needle-punched, flocked, orwoven construction. If the material comprises a pile layer, the pilefibers can be of any suitable material(s), both natural and synthetic,and of any suitable denier and length, and may be texturized orotherwise treated as required. Any backing materials known to besuitable for textile floor covering materials can be used, includingwoven and non-woven backings formed from natural or synthetic materials,provided that the backing is either inherently water-permeable or isperforated in some way to allow water to pass through it. Although, asdescribed above, the backing for a tufted pile material will typicallycomprise both a primary and a secondary backing, the latter can (asalready indicated) be omitted provided that the textile is sufficientlystable to be handled without it.

Generally, the use of a textile floor covering material in the upperlayer of a mat in accordance with the invention provides a wide degreeof choice in the appearance of the mat and its functionalcharacteristics. For example, a wide range of colors and surfacepatterns can be made available through selection of the pile fibers andthe carpet construction, and use of finishing operations such asprinting and embossing. Likewise, a wide range of functionalcharacteristics can be made available through selection of the pilefibers and the carpet construction, and use of surface treatments toenhance performance. The presence of the lower, water-receiving layermeans that the ability of the upper layer to retain water removed fromthe soles of shoes becomes less significant to the performance of themat, which also increases the degree of choice in the appearance of theupper layer and the materials from which it is constructed.

Examples of textile floor covering materials from which the upper layerof a mat in accordance with the invention could be selected aredescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,045,605 (Breens et al); WO 95/30040(Kleentex Industries, Inc.); WO 01/90471 (Walk Off Mats Limited); WO96/35836 (Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company); and U.S. Pat. No.5,662,980 (E.I Du Pont de Nemours and Company).

As regards the lower layer of an entrance mat in accordance with theinvention, any web material that offers the required water-receivingcharacteristics can be considered, provided it is in a form capable ofbeing secured to the selected upper layer of the mat. In somesituations, it may be sufficient that the lower layer simply enableswater that drains into it from the upper layer to be collected but, inother situations, it may be preferred that the lower layer is structuredto direct the collected water to one or more sides of the mat so that itcan be removed. Other characteristics of the lower layer, for exampleits resilience, may also affect the overall characteristics of theentrance mat. If required, more than one such lower layer may beprovided to increase the water-collecting capacity. The lower layer maybe an extruded structure but alternative forms are possible including,for example, woven, molded, embossed or corrugated structures.

Examples of alternative web materials from which the lower layer of amat in accordance with the invention could be selected are described inU.S. Pat. No. 4,177,312; U.S. Pat. No. 4,212,692; U.S. Pat. No.4,252,590 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,342,807 (Akzona). Specific examples ofalternative materials are those available, under the trade names“ENKAMAT” and “ENKADRAIN” from Colbond Geosynthetics Company of St.Denis la Plaine, 93128 France.

Alternative materials suitable for the water-impermeable bottom surfaceof a drop-down mat in accordance with the invention includewater-impermeable foams (for example an SBR [styrene-butadiene rubber]foam) and durable synthetic carpet underlay materials (for example anunderlay material made of recycled rubber granules agglomerated andbound with polyurethane, commercially available in thicknesses of 5 and10 mm from 3M Company under the trade designation “3M™ Nomad™ RecessedWell Underlay”). Depending on its nature, the bottom surface may beattached to the layer above by adhesive or by reclosable fasteners, orit may be applied by coating or spraying techniques. In the case of adrop-down mat, the floor-contacting surface of the bottom surfaceadvantageously has anti-slip characteristics.

Alternative methods can also be used for securing together the upper andlower layers of a mat in accordance with the invention, provided thatthey permit water to drain from the upper layer into the lower layer.For example, a permeable adhesive web in the form of a film or anon-woven material could be located between the upper and lower layersto bond them together. Alternatively, depending on the materials presentin the layers, it may be possible to bond the layers together simply byapplying heat to soften them. As a further alternative (for example, inthe case in which the upper and lower layers are both woven structures)it may be possible to form the two layers together.

As a further alternative, the upper layer may be removably-secured tothe lower layer using, for example, some form of reclosable fastenersystem such as a hook-and-loop fastener system, or through the provisionof hooks or similar features only on the lower layer. In that case, theupper layer can be replaced by another for cleaning purposes (e.g. forwashing), or simply to change the appearance of the mat. As yet afurther alternative, the upper layer could simply be laid on top of thelower layer provided that there is sufficient friction between thelayers to prevent them from moving relative to one another.

A drop-down mat in accordance with the invention can be provided, ifrequired, with an edging of any suitable type that takes account of thewater-receiving function of the lower layer of the mat. The edging mayserve to contain water that collects in the lower layer. Suitable matedgings include those available, from 3M Company, for use with 3M™Nomad™ Terra matting and 3M™ Nomad™ Aqua matting. In some cases, theedging alone could serve to secure the upper layer of the mat to thelower layer.

As indicated above, the water that is received in the lower layer of amat in accordance with the invention is contained for subsequentremoval, either because the mat is installed in a recess well in thefloor, or because the mat is provided with an impermeable lower surfaceand, if appropriate, a suitable edging. If the amount of water is notlarge, it may simply evaporate when the weather conditions haveimproved, this being encouraged by the provision of channels in thelower layer that permit the water to spread out over the area of themat. In the case of a drop-down mat, evaporation may be encouraged bythe provision of some form of ventilation in the edging.

If required, however, the water can be deliberately removed from thelower layer. This can be achieved in several ways, depending on theconstruction of the mat. In the case of a mat with an edging, forexample, the edging could be designed to permit the water to be removedby the application of suction. In the case of a mat in which the upperlayer is removable, access to the lower layer can readily be gained topermit the water to be removed, either by suction or in any othersuitable way. Alternatively, water may be removed from the top surfaceof the mat using a widely available vacuum cleaner of the type that issuitable for removing water. If desired, an absorbent particulatematerial can be provided in the lower layer and removed in any suitableway when it has become saturated. In the case in which the lower layeris a non-woven material as described above, it has been found that waterremoval can be facilitated by punching apertures through both thebacking of the upper layer and the non-woven lower layer, even when thebacking of the upper layer is inherently water-permeable.

It will be appreciated that material of any of the constructionsdescribed above as being suitable for use as a drop-down mat (i.e.having a water-impermeable lower surface) could also be used ascarpeting in, for example, spaces such entrance lobbies in buildings orpublic transport vehicles (e.g. train carriages). The carpeting could,if required, be provided in wall-to-wall form and removably-secured inposition with mechanical or adhesive fasteners.

Material of any of the constructions described above with reference tothe drawings can, where suitable, also be used as infill material in amat/carpet, where it would provide a part only of the surface area ofthe mat/carpet. For example, the material could be used in the profilesof a profile mat or in specially-adapted areas of a scraper mat. Anexample of a profile mat is the above-mentioned product available, underthe trade name “Nomad™ Optima”, from 3M Company. An example of a scrapermat with specially-adapted areas for textile infills is a one that isformed using Nomad 8900 “scraping and textile” tiles, also availablefrom 3M Company.

1-14. (canceled)
 15. Carpet comprising an upper layer having asoil-removing outer surface for contacting traffic passing over thecarpet, and a coextensive lower layer located below the upper layer andsecured thereto, the upper layer comprising textile fibers; wherein theupper layer is water-permeable whereby water can drain from the upperlayer into the lower layer; and the lower layer is arranged to collect,for subsequent removal, water that is received from the upper layer. 16.Carpet as defined in claim 15, in which the upper layer comprises atextile pile layer that provides the soil-removing outer surface. 17.Carpet as defined in claim 16, in which the pile comprises at least oneof cut pile fibers and loop pile fibers.
 18. Carpet as defined in claim17, in which the pile layer is a tufted layer.
 19. Carpet as defined inclaim 17, in which the pile layer has a backing that comprises animpervious material, the backing being perforated to permit the passageof water therethrough.
 20. Carpet as defined in claim 15, in which thelower layer comprises channels through which water can flow in adirection generally parallel to the soil-removing outer surface of thecarpet.
 21. Carpet as defined in claim 20, in which the channels aredefined by extruded polymeric material.
 22. Carpet as defined in claim20, in which the channels are provided by a layer of non-woven materialor coiled web material.
 23. Carpet as defined in claim 15, including abase layer located below the lower layer for containing water that iscollected by the lower layer.
 24. Carpet as defined in claim 23, inwhich the base layer is water impermeable.
 25. Carpet as defined inclaim 15, in which the lower layer has a water-impermeable lower surfacefor containing water that is collected by the lower layer.
 26. Carpet asdefined in claim 25, comprising an edging at the periphery of the carpetfor containing water that is collected by the lower layer.
 27. Carpet asdefined in claim 15, the carpet being located in a recess in a floor forcontaining water that is collected by the lower layer.
 28. Carpet asdefined in claim 15, in which the upper layer is removably-secured tothe lower layer.